Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department has made an assessment of the implications for its policy on the use of medicinal cannabis of the findings in The health effects of cannabis and cannabinoids, published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine in 2017; and if he will make a statement.

Cannabis is controlled as a Class B drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 and, in its raw form, currently has no recognised medicinal benefits in the United Kingdom. It is therefore listed as a Schedule 1 drug under the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001.

There is a clear regime in place, administered by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, to enable medicines (including those containing controlled drugs such as cannabis) to be developed, licensed and made available for medicinal use to patients in the UK. It is important that all medicines containing controlled drugs are thoroughly trialled to ensure they meet rigorous standards so that doctors and patients are sure of their efficacy and safety. This is important to ensure fulfilment of all established and necessary regulations for approving medicines in the UK.

There are no plans to devolve policy on the medicinal use of cannabis to the Scottish Parliament.